Last night, my wife and I lit a candle on the anniversary of my Father's death. It reminded me of some of my dad's conversations with me about the glass business.
In 1976 I had the fortune of joining CR Laurence Company as their field representative in New England. I told my dad about this job. He was excited for me, but asked some questions. He said,"You are selling supplies and equipment to an industry. You can have the greatest supplies and be the best salesman, but if the industry is declining, be real careful."
He went on,"You don't want to be selling Black and White Picture Tubes for televisions, you don't want to be selling house paint as everyone is going to aluminum siding." He asked me about the glass industry. I told him what little I knew at that point, and he wished me great luck, but reminded me, again, hard work trumps luck.
Ten years later I had the honor or joining Floral Glass, a glass fabricator and distributor in New York. A month after joining Floral, I called my Dad, asking him if he recalled our conversation of ten years ago. Frankly, it would make a great story to say he did, but he remembered WWII more clearly than he did our recent talks. Elaine and I went to visit a couple of weeks later and again I told him how great the glass industry is, and I do remember this conversation, so I thought I would share it with you:
I told him the glass industry was great because we dealt with great people. Our customers, let's say 85% of them, were owners of their own small and medium size businesses. We spoke with real people every day. People who cared about their businesses, and their vendor relationships.
I told him that glass as a building product would be here forever. It would change in some ways, but everyone likes to look outside. Glass won't be replaced. I explained to him that our name was on the spacer of insulating glass, (after I explained what insulating glass was), and it was a huge thrill to walk down the street, pointing out to our kids that we made that specific piece of glass. My Dad had been a salesman all his life. I explained to him the immense pride in actually making something. He had a rough time with that one. We would receive raw sheets of glass in one side of the building, and a couple of days later would ship out custom IG, or tempered or a table top. We actually added value to product. I explained to him that this was declining in America, that we were becoming a nation of information gathering, and not manufacturing. So he said, If I knew that was the future, why was I making glass? (If I was really listening to him, and myself, I would have bought stocks differently, that's for sure) We talked about the thrill of custom manufacturing, that you are making something that is needed, and needed now. We did not make for inventory. We made products that were waiting to go into an opening within a day or two. Customers were depending on us to get the correct piece of glass to the correct location, and their whole business counted on us. Well, most days we were great, but occasionally an error was put on the scoreboard. I would call my Dad and tell him about a big job we just finished, making all the glass for a building in New York that he might have heard of, and he began to understand my pride.
When he would visit us, I would take him for a ride and show him the buildings we did. Of course, we didn't install, but it was still our building.
The glass trade has such great rewards. We see the results of our work every day. The plumbers are just as important, but their work is hidden in the floors and columns. The glass, the doors, and the masonry are the only things that everyone sees. If you are reading this blog, you are in the glass industry and you know that pride. Once you touched the glass in installation or fabrication, that was your building.
One time when we were visiting my parents, we met some of their friends. The friends asked if I was the son who put up every great building in the world, or if I was the other son, (who was a biochemist). My dad actually was bragging about my job, rather than my brother, the Doctor. I knew then that the glass business was the greatest business in the world.
Today, we know that we are helping the world with energy saving low-e glass, that we help with safety glass and decorative glass. The pride continues to build.
What are you most proud of? Tell us at the USGlass Forum. It will be a thrill to read.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
Chinese New Year and Low E Glass
Happy New Year if you are celebrating the Year of The Pig, also known as the Year of DingHai, or if you are number person, the year 4074. My wife, Elaine, is making shrimp fried rice to celebrate the occasion. Elaine is great with a wok and I have been chopping vegetables for an hour. Elaine went to the store around 3:00 to get a few extra ingredients, and when she came home I saw she also bought twelve white plastic storage boxes. These boxes are about 12" wide, 20" long, 8" high, and come with a top that snaps on. They appear to be fairly rugged and well made. And by know, you are correctly predicting these were made in China.
Eighty-Eight Cents.
The Super-Market sells these for 88 cents. No coupons, not on special. We used to put our 'stuff' in shoe boxes, but for 88 cents, who can resist?
Elaine bought twelve of them because they fill a need helping us organize our house. Did she think about buying domestic boxes?
NO.
Did she think she was encouraging Chinese domination of the world economy?
NO.
She just bought what filled her need. There were no other boxes in the story. The store stocked these because they were able to resell at a low price and still make a profit. Eighty-eight cents a box, including the perfectly fitting lid. Made eight thousand miles away, packed, shipped, and the retailer made money selling at eighty-eight cents.
All because we needed some soy sauce to go on the fried rice in honor of the Year of the Pig.
The super market had the boxes, and they filled a need for our house.
Do you have Low E in your store? Do you have a sample window showing how clear Low E is? Has your glass fabricator created sample units with low E, so someone walking in for the equivalent of soy sauce sees that you have Low E and when they need to buy windows, or a storefront, they will think of low-e?
Do you have low E in your own storefront? Do you have a sign that says: This is energy-saving glass!
Fancy isn't needed. Just plant the seed--We sell low E energy savings glass. Have you kids write it in crayon. Type it in your word processor. Shout it from the roof tops...We have low E energy savings glass. You will sell more of it. If the local super market in the middle of New Hapmshire makes money at eighty-eight cents for a box...you know what I'm saying.
Eighty-Eight Cents.
The Super-Market sells these for 88 cents. No coupons, not on special. We used to put our 'stuff' in shoe boxes, but for 88 cents, who can resist?
Elaine bought twelve of them because they fill a need helping us organize our house. Did she think about buying domestic boxes?
NO.
Did she think she was encouraging Chinese domination of the world economy?
NO.
She just bought what filled her need. There were no other boxes in the story. The store stocked these because they were able to resell at a low price and still make a profit. Eighty-eight cents a box, including the perfectly fitting lid. Made eight thousand miles away, packed, shipped, and the retailer made money selling at eighty-eight cents.
All because we needed some soy sauce to go on the fried rice in honor of the Year of the Pig.
The super market had the boxes, and they filled a need for our house.
Do you have Low E in your store? Do you have a sample window showing how clear Low E is? Has your glass fabricator created sample units with low E, so someone walking in for the equivalent of soy sauce sees that you have Low E and when they need to buy windows, or a storefront, they will think of low-e?
Do you have low E in your own storefront? Do you have a sign that says: This is energy-saving glass!
Fancy isn't needed. Just plant the seed--We sell low E energy savings glass. Have you kids write it in crayon. Type it in your word processor. Shout it from the roof tops...We have low E energy savings glass. You will sell more of it. If the local super market in the middle of New Hapmshire makes money at eighty-eight cents for a box...you know what I'm saying.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Employee Manuals
Every business should have one. But if you read surveys, only 25% of businesses under 50 people have one. So, you are saying to yourself, we're a small company, everyone knows everyone, and we don't have any problems. I'll get to this chore next year, or the next year, or.....
Wrong choice.
An employee manual doesn't have to cost a lot of money, but it does take time and forces you to make some decisions. A proper employee manual can help you recruit better employees as they see you are a professional business. And a manual sets a tone, sets a style that you want for your business.
Do you dock an employee's time when they are three minutes late, or nine minutes late. Do you let them make up the time so they get paid? These questions, and a hundred more go into preparing the manual that works uniquely for the operation that you want to have.
If you allow an employee to be be nine minutes late, the real cost is for the rest of the crew, who will not be as productive, and the reinforcement of the concept, that everyone can come in late and there is no consequence.
Do you allow vacation at any time the employee requests, even your busy times? When you set the vacation times, publishing them in your manual, people will still complain, but they know you set the rules before the start of the game. There are a couple of hundred small decisions that you make once, and then stay in the glass business, not the personnel business. Of course, there are always valid reasons to change anything. Keep a short note with the details in the employee's file when you make an exception to a rule.
The problems of running a business come from "You let him do something special, why won't you let me"? Problems with unemployment boards and discrimination preventing authorities come when you treat people differently. Your policies are what you want, all you need do is enforce them fairly to all employees and you will not be in trouble.
Type in "employee manuals" in Google and you will see pre-written formats for sale under $100.00. Use these as a guideline, putting your name in the correct spaces. The hard part is done just once...deciding all the basic rules. If you are the average shop, you make the rules on the run, they vary and can be inconsistent. I have set up employee manuals for various companies. It takes about ten to fifteen hours with an advisor to go over and firm up your policies. The important part is to introduce the policies to all employees, and then follow them.
At one company I recently did a survey for, 70% of the employees did not know the full scope of the employee benefits. The owner was paying for the benefits; the employees for the most part didn't know it. We set up meetings to go over the new employee manual where we discussed the company's benefits and the employees were really pleased. I've also done work for a company that did the opposite and stopped paying for a benefit that two out of thirty people were using. They spent the same money on a different benefit, and 23 people ended up using the new benefit.
This was a home run for the company and the employees.
In my experience reviewing your company benefits as part of a revised or newly created employee manual pays for itself with renewed enthusiasm for the company and better control of the whole organization.
So, put "Creating an Employee Manual", on your personal to do list. If you work with a labor attorney, they should have a pre-written book that will be specific for your state.
Questions? Post your questions on the USGlass News Forum and we'll answer each one!
Wrong choice.
An employee manual doesn't have to cost a lot of money, but it does take time and forces you to make some decisions. A proper employee manual can help you recruit better employees as they see you are a professional business. And a manual sets a tone, sets a style that you want for your business.
Do you dock an employee's time when they are three minutes late, or nine minutes late. Do you let them make up the time so they get paid? These questions, and a hundred more go into preparing the manual that works uniquely for the operation that you want to have.
If you allow an employee to be be nine minutes late, the real cost is for the rest of the crew, who will not be as productive, and the reinforcement of the concept, that everyone can come in late and there is no consequence.
Do you allow vacation at any time the employee requests, even your busy times? When you set the vacation times, publishing them in your manual, people will still complain, but they know you set the rules before the start of the game. There are a couple of hundred small decisions that you make once, and then stay in the glass business, not the personnel business. Of course, there are always valid reasons to change anything. Keep a short note with the details in the employee's file when you make an exception to a rule.
The problems of running a business come from "You let him do something special, why won't you let me"? Problems with unemployment boards and discrimination preventing authorities come when you treat people differently. Your policies are what you want, all you need do is enforce them fairly to all employees and you will not be in trouble.
Type in "employee manuals" in Google and you will see pre-written formats for sale under $100.00. Use these as a guideline, putting your name in the correct spaces. The hard part is done just once...deciding all the basic rules. If you are the average shop, you make the rules on the run, they vary and can be inconsistent. I have set up employee manuals for various companies. It takes about ten to fifteen hours with an advisor to go over and firm up your policies. The important part is to introduce the policies to all employees, and then follow them.
At one company I recently did a survey for, 70% of the employees did not know the full scope of the employee benefits. The owner was paying for the benefits; the employees for the most part didn't know it. We set up meetings to go over the new employee manual where we discussed the company's benefits and the employees were really pleased. I've also done work for a company that did the opposite and stopped paying for a benefit that two out of thirty people were using. They spent the same money on a different benefit, and 23 people ended up using the new benefit.
This was a home run for the company and the employees.
In my experience reviewing your company benefits as part of a revised or newly created employee manual pays for itself with renewed enthusiasm for the company and better control of the whole organization.
So, put "Creating an Employee Manual", on your personal to do list. If you work with a labor attorney, they should have a pre-written book that will be specific for your state.
Questions? Post your questions on the USGlass News Forum and we'll answer each one!
Monday, February 12, 2007
Which Low-E is Right For My Shop?
Both.
You don't have to work with one only. Soft coat low-e is perfect for some situations, and hard coat for others.
Here are some pros and cons:
Soft coat should be used when you have the lead time to get the product from a reliable vendor. Soft coat is better performaning, meaning it is more energy efficient than hard coat.
That is soft-coat's only advantage--but it is the most important reason to use energy efficient glass so it trumps all other points.
The reasons to use hard coat, though, are many. And a lot of these reasons will add up to the point that some jobs are better in hard coat. Hard coat is in stock at most temperers and insulators, while soft coat is not as readily stocked. If you have a job that will require quick and unexpected replacements, like an elementary school, than hard coat may have an advantage. Every architect will specify soft coat, its your job to remind them of the replacement product dilemma. You probably have vendors that specialize in both hard coat and soft coat, so you can get what is needed, but availability is the key to quick replacement.
Soft coat is being improved every year. The manufacturers keep coming up with new and more energy efficient flavors, but reorders and color matching becomes more complicated. The hard coats have basically changed twice in about ten years, so you have a stronger chance of succeeding in color match on a job down the road.
Soft coat is more complicated to fabricate than hard coat. Buy your soft coat from a supplier that really knows how to handle it. There are lots of good ones. Most fabricating insulators can handle hard coat very well. The only mistake that's really made with hard coat is to fabricate with the wrong surface out. Be sure to check that before installation. Ask your fabricator to put stickers on the low-e side.
Depending on your climate, some windows have low-e on the second surface and some on the third. Now you just hired a few new installers, who maybe came from another part of the country. Make sure your current crew knows what the glazing requirements are for the jobs they are working on.
If you fabricate your own replacement IG, then you can work with hard coat, just like any other product. Keep the glass clean, use good sealants and your fine!
You don't have to work with one only. Soft coat low-e is perfect for some situations, and hard coat for others.
Here are some pros and cons:
Soft coat should be used when you have the lead time to get the product from a reliable vendor. Soft coat is better performaning, meaning it is more energy efficient than hard coat.
That is soft-coat's only advantage--but it is the most important reason to use energy efficient glass so it trumps all other points.
The reasons to use hard coat, though, are many. And a lot of these reasons will add up to the point that some jobs are better in hard coat. Hard coat is in stock at most temperers and insulators, while soft coat is not as readily stocked. If you have a job that will require quick and unexpected replacements, like an elementary school, than hard coat may have an advantage. Every architect will specify soft coat, its your job to remind them of the replacement product dilemma. You probably have vendors that specialize in both hard coat and soft coat, so you can get what is needed, but availability is the key to quick replacement.
Soft coat is being improved every year. The manufacturers keep coming up with new and more energy efficient flavors, but reorders and color matching becomes more complicated. The hard coats have basically changed twice in about ten years, so you have a stronger chance of succeeding in color match on a job down the road.
Soft coat is more complicated to fabricate than hard coat. Buy your soft coat from a supplier that really knows how to handle it. There are lots of good ones. Most fabricating insulators can handle hard coat very well. The only mistake that's really made with hard coat is to fabricate with the wrong surface out. Be sure to check that before installation. Ask your fabricator to put stickers on the low-e side.
Depending on your climate, some windows have low-e on the second surface and some on the third. Now you just hired a few new installers, who maybe came from another part of the country. Make sure your current crew knows what the glazing requirements are for the jobs they are working on.
If you fabricate your own replacement IG, then you can work with hard coat, just like any other product. Keep the glass clean, use good sealants and your fine!
Friday, February 9, 2007
"The Pajama Game" Song
Trust me, this will be as short as I can make it, so please read to the end.
In 1954, Richard Adler and Jerry Ross wrote the musical play "The Pajama Game", based on a book called 7-1/2 Cents by Richard Bissell. The book was about the bargaining for a union contract that called for a 7 1/2 cent hourly increase. Like all great Broadway musicals, everything came out OK in the end, with management and pajama makers singing together in the grand finale.
(Hey Paul, this is a glass blog...get to the point already!)
The show stopping number, the one that earned the best song award, can still be heard today: STEAM HEAT. This refers to more heat coming into a lead's romantic life, but that is not important here.
Thank God we didn't have Low E glass in 1954. Without cold and drafty places, there would have been no inspiration or need for this song, the play might not have made it, and American Theatre History may indeed be very different.
So far, this is the only good reason I've come across for not having Low-E glass everywhere.
In 1954, Richard Adler and Jerry Ross wrote the musical play "The Pajama Game", based on a book called 7-1/2 Cents by Richard Bissell. The book was about the bargaining for a union contract that called for a 7 1/2 cent hourly increase. Like all great Broadway musicals, everything came out OK in the end, with management and pajama makers singing together in the grand finale.
(Hey Paul, this is a glass blog...get to the point already!)
The show stopping number, the one that earned the best song award, can still be heard today: STEAM HEAT. This refers to more heat coming into a lead's romantic life, but that is not important here.
Thank God we didn't have Low E glass in 1954. Without cold and drafty places, there would have been no inspiration or need for this song, the play might not have made it, and American Theatre History may indeed be very different.
So far, this is the only good reason I've come across for not having Low-E glass everywhere.
Monday, February 5, 2007
The Top Ten Things You Shouldn't Say to Your Glass Supplier
Mr. Letterman has cornered the 'Top Ten List' on his show...but wait, just the other day I was going through his trash and found this reject:
THE TOP TEN THINGS YOU SHOULDN'T SAY TO
YOUR GLASS SUPPLIER
10. Sure, you can take a verbal order from me.
9. You've known me for years...who are you going to believe, me or Dunn & Bradstreet?
8. Why not? The architect says you can drill thirty-eight holes in that glass!
7. Everybody else accepts my backcharges.
6. I don't care if I have to wait six months for the glass, you have to match the price with domestic glass.
5. You must cut my prices so I can survive against my more efficient competitors.
4. I need to change the size on the cut-size order given you two weeks ago.
3. Sure, I buy less from you than the other guy, but you still have to give me a better price, so, someday you have a chance to get back in here.
2. My son wants a job for the summer...where can you place him?
1. Nobody else charges me the energy surcharge!
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